Chris Coleman has waved goodbye, paid his thanks, and shaken hands – but he still does not know if he has taken charge of his final Wales match.
Coleman did all the things a departing manager might be expected to do after his team had drawn 1-1 with Panama in a friendly at the Cardiff City Stadium on Tuesday night.
There was the wave to fans and raised applause, the acknowledgments of the contributions of others, and the best wishes for what he hopes will be a bright future for the young side that, in the strict contractual sense, he has now ended his association with.
But as to whether the FAW share his insistence that a bigger investment is now required on staff and back-up for him to agree a new deal, then the 47-year-old insists he is still in the dark.
There are three possible outcomes: Coleman quickly gets what he is asking for and is confirmed as staying on for at least two more years, possibly four; the FAW tell him they will not be following his blueprint and the manager returns to the piranha pool of club management; there is some compromise on both sides so that Coleman gets some of what he wants, enough, perhaps, for him to opt to stay on.
“I honestly don’t know what’s going to happen,” he admitted. “I don’t know if that’s my last game yet or not. But my situation is public so I hope it’s resolved quickly. I think I am the man to lead them but there is a bit more to it than that.
“I said it’s been an absolute pleasure if this is my last experience with them. We’ve been through a lot and I’m sitting here now with bonds and friendships that will never be broken.
“It’s all down to the players who are an incredible bunch and they’ll go on and keep achieving.
“There’s still a little hangover because we didn’t get to Russia, but once we get closer to the next challenge that’s when this place will be buzzing again.”
Wales fans left the FAW hierarchy in no doubt as to what they want to happen.
They showed their support for Coleman from the first minute as they urged the man who guided them to the semi-finals of Euro 2016 to stay.
“A huge, huge thank you to them – I appreciated them singing my name,” Coleman said.
“These are our core fans. These are the fans that in the first 12 to 18 months, in my experience here, didn’t like me much!
“But I didn’t mind because they were the only fans that showed up for us – 9,000-10,000 people.
“I didn’t mind them booing because at least they paid the money to come and support their country and they’re still doing it.”
Coleman had fielded an experimental line-up with first starts for Ben Woodburn, Ethan Ampadu and David Brooks and second-half debuts for Tom Lockyer, Lee Evans, Ryan Hedges and Marley Watkins.
But Wales looked on course for victory through Tom Lawrence’s superb 75th-minute strike, only for Armando Cooper to equalise for the World Cup finalists in the third minute of stoppage time.
“It was all about blooding the young ones, because there’s probably about another 12 months before it all kicks off again.
“It was important they got a taste of what it’s like against an international team, especially against a team who have qualified for a World Cup.
“I was pleased with them and I’m convinced they will come through and add to the squad.”
